Table 1. Steps in the INFFER process

	Description of Step	Relevant Document
1.	Develop a list of significant natural assets in the relevant region(s)	“Significant Asset Identification Guide”
2.	Apply an initial filter to the asset list, using a simplified set of criteria	“Filtering Significant Assets Prior to Detailed Assessment”
3.	Define projects and conduct detailed assessments of them	“Project Assessment Form”, and “Project Assessment Form Instruction Manual”
4.	Select priority projects	“Selection of Priority Projects”
5.	Develop investment plans or funding proposals	“Development of investment plans or funding proposals”
6.	Implement funded projects	“Implementation of funded projects”
7.	Monitor, evaluate and adaptively manage projects	“Monitoring, Evaluation and Adaptive Management following INFFER Assessment”

 

Step 1: A list of significant natural assets that are candidates for investment is prepared. These assets can be drawn from existing documents or lists, from community workshops, from relevant experts, or from analytical processes, such as systematic conservation planning. At the regional level, the list may include 100 to 300 significant assets.

Step 2: Using a simplified set of criteria, the list of significant assets is filtered down to ~20-40 assets. Our suggested approach is to identify assets of high significance, with high current or predicted future damage. Then the filtered list is further reduced (to ~10-20) using the five questions on the INFFER Pre-assessment Checklist. Assets may be culled at this point because they are not spatially explicit, because a specific, measurable time-bound goal cannot be formulated, or because an initial assessment indicates that the project would not be cost-effective.

Step 3: Apply the INFFER Project Assessment Form to each asset on the reduced list. This process draws together readily available information, consisting of desktop review of publications and reports, and consultation with the community and with relevant experts.

Information required at step 3 includes: asset significance, threats, project goal, works and actions, time lags, effectiveness of works, private adoption of actions, delivery mechanisms and costs.

The output from step 3 is a Project Assessment Report which includes: a Benefit: Cost Index (to help rank alternative projects), risk factors (practice change, technical feasibility, socio-politics, long-term funding), spin-offs, quality of information and key information gaps.

Step 4: Select a short list of priority assets/projects based on the information in the Project Assessment Report and other relevant considerations.

Step 5: Develop investment plans or proposals for external funding (depending on whether INFFER is being used to allocate an internal budget or to develop and assess projects for external funding.

Step 6: Implement those projects that receive funding.

Step 7: Monitor, evaluate and adaptively manage projects. We suggest that, at regular intervals (say every two years), the data in the original Project Assessment Form for each funded asset/project should be updated to reflect lessons learned, progress towards outcomes, and any new data or analysis that has become available. At this point, managers should consider whether the original design of the project is still suitable, and whether the project should remain a priority.

INFFER is closely related to Benefit: Cost Analysis. Key differences are:

•  It is carefully structured to suit natural resource management problems;

•  It doesn’t rely on dollar values for intangible environmental benefits (although these can be included if available);

•  It assists with project development and design, particularly in relation to the logic and internal consistency of the project; and

•  In addition to evaluating the value for money from a project, INFFER provides guidance about appropriate policy tools/delivery mechanisms to use.

Advantages of the INFFER approach

•  The approach is efficient, requiring detailed analysis only for projects that appear to be good prospects for investment based on available information.

•  The process is transparent and internally consistent.

•  It requires decision makers to be explicit about their assumptions.

•  The framework helps environmental managers to recognise important knowledge gaps.

•  It supports good integration of the many different sorts of relevant information.

•  Clear and realistic targets for monitoring and evaluation emerge from the process.

•  It provides stronger justification for realistic levels of funding to protect high-value assets and provides sound argument for further investigations if that is what is required.

•  It allows comparison of the relative priority of investments in different types of environmental and natural resource assets.

Appendix

Graphical overview of INFFER process (steps 1-4) (350K jpg)

For further information, there are various documents available on the INFFER home page at www.inffer.org.